Thursday, December 31, 2015

Cat Thursday - Happy New Year!


Welcome to the weekly meme that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats! Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of cats! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

Um, yeah...I don't know what day it is. lol Being off work has seriously run my days together! So sorry this post is late. 

You might have noticed the new button up top. Yup. New Year, new look for Cat Thursday. Hope you like it! 

Wishing you all a safe and Happy New Year! Looking forward to a spectacular 2016!

***********

These kitties obviously partied too much on New Year's Eve...




Loved this cartoon!



May the cat be with you!

Griz and Norm


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Monday, December 28, 2015

It's time to go back to the Prairie....


An Armchair by the Sea and Smoke & Mirrors are hosting this year long Little House Read-a-Long!

I've been wanting to re-read these for quite some time now...ever since I started acquiring the books at library sales over the years. I'll admit that I really only remember reading the first and second book when I was a girl so this will be my chance to read the entire series. I'm excited!

Schedule
January - Little House in the Big Woods
February - Little House on the Prairie
March - Farmer Boy
April - On the Banks of Plum Creek
May - By the Shores of Silver Lake
June - The Long Winter
July - Little Town on the Prairie
August - These Happy Golden Years
September - The First Four Years
October - On the Way Home
November - West from Home
December - Pioneer Girl/ A Wilder Rose by Susan Wittig Albert (we are going to read one each of these and then both if we have time. You are welcome to choose either one or any other book related to Laura Ingalls Wilder)

Are you joining in?

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Thursday, December 24, 2015

Cat Thursday Christmas - An Abundance of Cat Christmas Cheer...Merry Christmas!


Welcome to the weekly meme that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats! Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of cats! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

All done at the job (as of this past Tuesday) and just have some training to do before I start the new one on January 7. Hoping it will be a lot less stress and won't take up so much of my time so I can concentrate on what I love doing most...posting to this blog and visiting you lovely people each week. Thank you so much for sticking with me during this Oh So Crazy year. I appreciate it more than you know.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas! Stay safe and enjoy your time with family and friends. 

Now for some fun!










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Friday, December 18, 2015

A Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica's Rebellion - Review


My thoughts
Let's face it...I'm fascinated by many historical figures. I can't help it. History is in my blood. I think I might even breathe it. Ever since I can remember, I have always been obsessed with all things historical. I mean, in third grade, when every other kid wanted to be a superhero or a princess, who did I want to be? Betsy Ross! Luckily, my mom is an excellent seamstress and she sewed me the most gorgeous Revolutionary period ensemble (I need to dig up that picture some time and post it here). But I digress. My point is that I've noticed that I begin many a review with the phrase "I have always been fascinated by...". And so, this is again the case with the legendary Boudica, the Iceni queen who refused to back down when betrayed by Rome.

As with last year's A Day of Fire, this novel has a unique perspective. It's a seven part novel written by seven different authors. Each part tells the story of someone who lived, and crossed paths, during Boudica's rebellion. The stories are compelling and told by some of our best authors in the historical fiction genre. And I now have a new fascination with Cartimandua, who was queen of the Brigantes during Boudica's time. I will definitely be picking up the biography that Ben Kane mentions in the introduction, written by Nicki Howarth.

I'm really enjoying this kind of telling of historical stories. It's like getting seven historical novels in one book. I can't wait to hear what figure/subject they will be writing about next. I hope that is in their plans! 

You simply must grab this book. The historical detail alone makes it worth the read. Add in characters with dimension and fantastic storytelling, and this is a book that firmly falls into the must read category.

A Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica’s Rebellion
by Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, S.J.A. Turney, and Russell Whitfield

Publication Date: November 13, 2015
Knight Media LLC
eBook & Paperback; 440 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction



Britannia: land of mist and magic clinging to the western edge of the Roman Empire. A red-haired queen named Boudica led her people in a desperate rebellion against the might of Rome, an epic struggle destined to consume heroes and cowards, young and old, Roman and Celt . . . and these are their stories.

A calculating queen sees the sparks of revolt in a king’s death.

A neglected slave girl seizes her own courage as Boudica calls for war.

An idealistic tribune finds manhood in a brutal baptism of blood and slaughter.

A conflicted warrior hovers between loyalty to tribe and loyalty to Rome.

A death-haunted Druid challenges the gods themselves to ensure victory for his people.

An old champion struggles for everlasting glory in the final battle against the legions.

A fiery princess fights to salvage the pieces of her mother’s dream as the ravens circle.


A novel in seven parts, overlapping stories of warriors and peacemakers, queens and slaves, Romans and Celts who cross paths during Boudica’s epic rebellion. But who will survive to see the dawn of a new Britannia, and who will fall to feed the ravens?



A Year of Ravens Authors
Ruth Downie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Kate Quinn, Vicky Alvear Shecter, S.J.A. Turney, & Russell Whitfield


Tour Schedule: http://hfvirtualbooktours.com/ayearofravensblogtour/
Hashtags: #AYearofRavensBlogTour #HistoricalFiction #Boudica
Twitter Tags: @hfvbt


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Thursday, December 17, 2015

Cat Thursday Christmas - Holiday Hilarity!


Welcome to the weekly meme that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats! Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of cats! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

How are you all faring this holiday season? If your lives are anything like mine right now, you're going to need this bit of kitty holiday hilarity. I'm still staying in the spirit...and counting the days until my last day on the job this coming Tuesday. I still have a lot of holiday plans to cram in between now and Christmas. Baking cookies, driving around to look at Christmas lights with my boys...and seeing Star Wars this weekend! THAT is going to make my year. What can I say...I'm a TOTAL Star Wars geek.

I absolutely LOVE this video!





Can't forget Grumpy!


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Thursday, December 10, 2015

Cat Thursday Christmas - Holiday Antics


Welcome to the weekly meme that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats! Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of cats! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

Good news! My time will be freeing up soon, as I put in my two weeks notice and will no longer be working a job that monopolizes all of my time. Yay! So, no more lack of visits from me. I'm looking forward to catching up with you all.

Anyone have their shopping done yet? I haven't even started!




And last but not least...Grumpy!


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Thursday, December 3, 2015

Cat Thursday: Christmas - Joyous Time of Year!


Welcome to the weekly meme that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats! Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of cats! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

Sorry I'm late this week! I went to bed earlier than usual last night and when I woke up this morning, I went...doh!

So, it's the holidays and you know what that means...Christmas kitties! Yay!

On one hand...



And on the other...







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Friday, November 27, 2015

The Tiger and the Dove Trilogy - Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sale!


Books 1 and 2 of the Tiger and the Dove trilogy will be 99 cents (each) on Amazon for Kindle this Friday (tomorrow) through Monday! You don't want to miss this excellent historical fiction series. It would make a great gift for the Kindle book readers in your family, or among your friends. (And Book 3 will be on sale next week!)

The reviews speak for themselves. 4.6 out of 5 stars from 33 reviews for The Grip of God and 4.5 out of 5 stars from 14 reviews for Solomon's Bride.

Book 1 - The Grip of God  Buy the Book
The Grip of God is the first novel in an epic historical trilogy, The Tiger and the Dove. Set in the thirteenth century, its heroine, Sofia, is a young princess of Kievan Rus. She begins her story by recounting her capture in battle and life of slavery to a young army captain in the Mongol armies that are flooding Europe. Not only is her life shattered, it is threatened by the bitter rivalries in her new master’s powerful family, and shadowed by the leader of the Mongol invasion, Batu Khan, Genghis Khan’s grandson. How will she learn to survive in a world of total war, much less rediscover the love she once took for granted? Always seeking to escape and menaced by outer enemies and inner turmoil, where can she find safe haven even if she can break free? Clear eyed and intelligent, Sofia could be a character from The Game of Thrones, but she refuses to believe that life is solely about the strong dominating the weak or about taking endless revenge. Her story is based on actual historical events, which haunt her destiny. Like an intelligent Forrest Gump, she reflects her times. But as she matures, she learns to reflect on them as well, and to transcend their fetters. In doing so, she recreates a lost era for us, her readers.

Book 2 - Solomon's Bride  Buy the Book
Solomon’s Bride is the dramatic sequel to The Grip of God. Sofia, the heroine, a former princess from Kievan Rus’ was enslaved by a Mongol nobleman and then taken as a concubine by the leader of the Mongol invasions, Batu Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan. Now, having fled the Mongols with a price on her head, Sofia escapes into Persia and what she believes will be safety, only to fall into the clutches of the Assassins, who seek to disrupt the Mongol empire. In a world at war, both outer and inner, the second phase of her adventures unfolds. Can she ever find safe haven, much less the lost love and family that was almost destroyed by the Mongols?

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Thursday, November 26, 2015

Cat Thursday - Happy Thanksgiving!


Welcome to the weekly meme that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats! Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of cats! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

Wishing you and yours a very safe and Happy Thanksgiving. Now give those fur babies some turkey! 

And thanks for all the well wishes last week. I can't say things have gotten any better, but I'm doing some thinking on some major changes in my life.







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Thursday, November 19, 2015

Cat Thursday - Stressed Out


Welcome to the weekly meme that celebrates the wonders and sometime hilarity of cats! Join us by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you may have come across, famous cat art or even share with us pics of your own beloved cat(s). It's all for the love of cats! (share your post in the Mr. Linky below)

Yeah...that's me. I think it's going to be my state of mind throughout the holidays. I'm behind on everything. I haven't even posted sign ups for the Christmas reading challenge and read-a-thon (which I host annually) and they start next week. I pretty much would like to do like that last kitty. lol







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- See more at: http://www.techtrickhome.com/2013/02/show-comment-box-above-comments-on.html#sthash.TjHz2Px9.dpuf